The Singapore Sling: A Refreshing Drink for the Weekend

Even if the city that surrounds it has become a crisp, efficient, thoroughly uptight center of modern finance, Singapore's Raffles Hotel still conjures up images of louche, colonial luxury. This is in no small part due to its signature drink, the Singapore Sling, a tall red concoction that stands proud at the head of the tribe of umbrella drinks. There are countless different recipes for the Sling in existence, and not even the hotel has the original 1915 recipe, which has been lost to history. But this one comes from a 1948 cocktail guide written by one John Kelly, an undoubtedly upstanding citizen who ran a liquor-importing business in Shanghai before the Japanese chased him out. Once back in the States, he claimed that he got his Sling recipe directly from the good people at Raffles. We have no reason to doubt him, and with its twin virtues of simplicity and delicious, we daresay we believe in him.

The Recipe: Combine in a tall glass: 1.5 oz London dry gin (Beefeater or Tanqueray), 1.5 oz Cherry Herring or Bols cherry brandy, and .5 oz fresh-squeezed lime juice. Add ice, stir, and top off with 1 oz chilled seltzer. Float .5 oz Plymouth sloe gin over the top, stick a straw in it, and garnish with a lime wheel perched on the rim.